by "LJ909" (lj909)
Published 08/15/2017 at 15:51
by "LJ909" (lj909)
Published 08/15/2017 at 15:51
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STARS: 1
And why cant I either find a good one or one at all? For some weird reason my cousin, who’s known to “ball on a budget”, is looking for an Infiniti FX50 or M56, specifically the 09-15 FX50 with Nissan’s surprisingly good VK50VE 5 liter nearly 400 horse V8 (and never used in anything else besides the the FX/QX70 and various LM racing cars) and the M56 with Nissan’s 5.6 liter V8 (which is weirdly the only car to use the 5.6. Everything else is a truck or SUV). So I’ve been looking for one for him.
Now production numbers for how man FX50's were made cant be found anywhere from what I’ve seen. I even went so far as to go dig through the Infiniti forums. Nothing. And for some reason, FX’s in general have high Miles on them used, especially the first gen before the redesign. I found 4 FX50's within 100 miles of us. Nationwide I only found 29.
The one with the lowest miles, just over 69k, the dealer still wants nearly 33 grand for it. I told him this price was a little high but hes attracted to it because its the lowest miles of any near us, and its the only one at an actual Infiniti dealer.
The M56 gets even “rarer”. For one, there are none in the whole state of California used. Nationwide there are only 39. The closest one to us is this one, a thousand miles away in Washington. Its a CPO for 32 grand with 43 thousand miles on it. For whatever reason he would be willing to travel for one of these if he found the right price though he said. But with how both of these models are hit and miss pricing and mileage, I told him “bro there are way better cars for these prices. Its really not worth the hassle”. But for whatever reason hes set on these 2 models. But does anyone know why they made so few? Specifically the FX?
"ZHP Sparky, the 5th" (e30s2k)
08/15/2017 at 15:58, STARS: 1
I love the FX, especially the first generation. It’s a vehicle that has aged beautifully and can be had for crazy cheap prices (haven’t really looked into later generations). Definitely a spot open for one in my non-existent hangar-turned-garage full of quirky cars.
Probably made so few because nobody really bought these vehicles?
"Textured Soy Protein" (texturedsoyprotein)
08/15/2017 at 16:01, STARS: 1
I tried looking for an FX50 last year and they are few and far between. I was looking specifically for the sport package which included 21" wheels instead of 20s, adaptive shocks, and bolster-ier seat bolsters.
The FX37 is already relatively quick and sporty for a crossover, and doesn’t get very good mileage. Yeah the FX50 is faster but its mileage is even worse, and you have to pay for 20" or 21" tires.
I’m assuming the same basic idea is the reason for the M56 being not too common.
Even among the German brands, stepping up from the already pretty good 6-cylinder midsize models to the V8 ones is rare. But it’s at least more common than with Infiniti which generally isn’t thought of as equally fancy to the Germans.
"WilliamsSW" (williamssw)
08/15/2017 at 16:01, STARS: 1
IMHO, the FX is an odd combination of a big gas guzzler that doesn’t actually have much utility. You’d think that would be winner today, given the proliferation of BMW X6's and the like, but I think the FX has been in production since the dawn of time, and looks a bit dated - so sales have slipped.
I don’t quite understand the lack of popularity of the M56, but Infiniti has never gotten much volume traction in that segment (they’ve won with the smaller cars).
"BrianGriffin thinks “reliable” is just a state of mind" (briangriffinsprius)
08/15/2017 at 16:02, STARS: 0
CarMax has a pretty M56 with low miles for $25k in Texas. Just saying.
"Party-vi" (party-vi)
08/15/2017 at 16:04, STARS: 0
Blam. Carmax. 2012. 50k miles. $25,000.
https://www.carmax.com/car/14958810
"LJ909" (lj909)
08/15/2017 at 16:08, STARS: 0
I love it too. Its always been the best example of a crossover for me considering that it rode on the same platform as the G35/37/Z. But the people that bought them kept them forever. They can be had for crazy cheap, but them miles on them are crazy high. Yea you’ll find one for 10 or 11 grand, but its going to have upwards of 140 thousand+ miles on it.
You’re right about no one buying them though. Last I saw, sales numbers for model year 13 were 4 to 500 a month.
"LJ909" (lj909)
08/15/2017 at 16:10, STARS: 0
Yea those are the exact reason I tried talking him out of the FX. Yea its sport, but at a cost of shitty gas mileage and paying for those huge ass tires. I assume you never found that model because that Sport was super specific.
"LJ909" (lj909)
08/15/2017 at 16:14, STARS: 2
Ive said its the beset example of a crossover considering its shared platform with the G/Z. But its a crossover for no other reason. And like I pointed out to my cousin, it has a lot of hits against it. Its styling cuts into its utility, it gets shitty gas mileage and it has expensive tires.
The M56 or the M in general never caught on because I think because Infiniti gave up on a proper flagship after the Q went away in 02, and the M took its place for them. Even now you can get a long wheelbase version. But its weird because its not quite a flagship and its not quite a, say 5 Series type. You can mention it in the same vein as the Acura RLX.
"LJ909" (lj909)
08/15/2017 at 16:16, STARS: 0
I just saw it and I’m going to let him know. $549 bucks to transfer to the LA area though. But even then, its one of 2 in the whole country that they have. Weird.
"LJ909" (lj909)
08/15/2017 at 16:17, STARS: 0
Yea I just told the other guy Im going to let my cousin know about this one. You get that sweet sweet Carmax warranty. We will see if he wants to pay the nearly $600 bucks for the transfer to the LA area though.
"ZHP Sparky, the 5th" (e30s2k)
08/15/2017 at 16:21, STARS: 1
Mileage wouldn’t scare me if they’re reliable/well maintained? And if someone kept it for 10+ years and put that many miles on it, I’d imagine it’s a relatively safe bet?
Warning, I drive a 29 year old BMW with close to 300k miles on it…so I may not have the most sound logic.
"LJ909" (lj909)
08/15/2017 at 16:24, STARS: 1
From what I’ve seen some of these things are driven hard given the performance they had, especially the first gens. Interiors on them dont really age well either, specifically the leather and the steering wheel. But if you have a 300 thousand mile 30 year old Bimmer, go for it. They are great if you find the right example.
"fintail" (fintail)
08/15/2017 at 16:56, STARS: 0
I like the steering wheel cover.
"WilliamsSW" (williamssw)
08/15/2017 at 17:02, STARS: 1
I think the FX is a really good looking vehicle, too, and I hear that it handles fairly well for what it is. But the lack of utility would keep me from even trying it. And yeah, your other points are dead on, too.
The QX80 is Infiniti’s de facto flagship - they’re pretty common around me, actually. A bit odd looking, yet I kinda like it somehow.
Yeah, the M doesn’t qualify as a flagship - I think it would need to be discounted against the 5 or E, but it doesn’t seem to be much less. And the GS is a lot cheaper, yet it’s a slow seller too. The long wheelbase version is unabashedly for the Chinese market - for the US market, it doesn’t make sense to me (and looks ungainly).
"Party-vi" (party-vi)
08/15/2017 at 17:02, STARS: 0
Scratching my head over that one.
"Danger" (dangerray)
08/15/2017 at 17:05, STARS: 1
They were some of the best getaway cars. I don’t think they sold much, so that is why they are hard to find now.
"Discerning" (discerning2003c5z)
08/15/2017 at 17:36, STARS: 1
I drove one at a Carmax that was THRASHED. Interior was in poor condition, lots of miles on the odometer, and the previous owner clearly did very little in upkeep. Sad to see it so abused.
It wasn’t terribly quick, but it wasn’t bad. I was cross shopping with M3's and such at the time.
"Textured Soy Protein" (texturedsoyprotein)
08/15/2017 at 17:42, STARS: 1
There were a couple examples where I would have had to buy from out of state, but I bought my 335xi from a guy in San Diego and had shipped here. I ended up putting a ton of mods on the 335xi so it wasn’t exactly cheaper, I just didn’t want to put up with the mileage of the FX50. Honestly it was one stupid decision instead of a different stupid decision.
"LJ909" (lj909)
08/15/2017 at 18:23, STARS: 2
Yea I think the QX80 is their flagship just as much as the Escalade is for Cadillac. My girlfriends mother has one. Its huge in an American way.
I think the long wheelbase M was specifically for the Chinese and for whatever reason they thought it would work here though Im not sure why. The rear seat doesnt even have amenities.
"LJ909" (lj909)
08/15/2017 at 18:28, STARS: 0
Yea I mentioned to someone else that for some reason FX’s were beat on pretty hard. You’ll be hard pressed to find one in good condition, especially a first gen. Seats and steering wheels are always bad.
"LJ909" (lj909)
08/15/2017 at 18:31, STARS: 0
Kinda sorta. If you can put up with the repair costs of the 335, you would have been fine with the tire costs on the FX. I dont know how reliable the FX is though.
"Textured Soy Protein" (texturedsoyprotein)
08/15/2017 at 23:17, STARS: 1
Starting price of the 335xi was a lot lower than the FX50 as well. Really what put me over the edge on the FX50 was the mileage, it’s rated for 14 mpg city and while I do brief jaunts a few exits up or down the highway my mileage for the most part trends much closer to a car’s city rating than highway.
"pip bip - choose Corrour" (hhgttg69)
08/16/2017 at 06:41, STARS: 0
what about on CL?
"LJ909" (lj909)
08/16/2017 at 09:52, STARS: 0
I only found 2 on CL. Both private sellers. One is a 09 with 89 thousand miles. The guy wants 21 grand.
The other is a 2010 S with 100,264 miles. Guy wants 24 grand. Cp for both.
The M56, I found 4 examples. One wants 18 grand for an 2011 with 95 thousand miles.
Another one wants 15 grand with 96 thousand miles.
An extreme example is one that has 161 thousand miles on it and the guy wants 11 thousand.
The last guy is weird. He’s leasing his car for $299 a month for anyone that wants to drive uber or lyft with it.
"Obruni" (Obruni)
08/19/2017 at 22:53, STARS: 1
I think there are a few reasons as to why the FX50 struggled.
The FX37 was priced to undercut the equivalent X5 and M-Class by thousands of dollars, but the FX50 was not.
this also meant that the step up in price from a V6 to V8 was steep for that class.
The Infiniti QX56 could be had for the same money - a much more spacious vehicle with a V8.
"LJ909" (lj909)
08/19/2017 at 23:40, STARS: 0
Yea I remember there was like a 15-16 grand price difference to go from the FX37 to the FX50, which started above 60 grand I think. And for what it was thats a big pill to swallow.
"GeorgeP" (glp3)
03/14/2019 at 07:31, STARS: 1
Tell him look into the q70 5.7 it’s the same car as the m56 just updated. And I've found some with less than 60k miles for under 30k.
"TDotsonJr" (tjdotson21)
06/13/2019 at 22:03, STARS: 0
I have a 2011 M56x for sale here in Tacoma, Washington email tjittles3@gmail.com